When paradise stretches to infinity
With a strawberry daiquiri in hand and feet soaked in crystal clear water, the world could end. What does it matter when you enjoy a tiny beach surrounded by green pine trees, beautiful fishing docks and a sun that presses but does not burn . Just enough so that you feel like, between sips, refreshing yourself in this corner of the Mediterranean. It is the perfect way to swim alone among hundreds of fish. Rays of light that shine on a background of white sand dotted with leafy Posidonia meadows that sway in slow motion. Difficult to access and located in the extreme north of Ibiza, Cala d'en Serra is a place where time runs differently , to which the coverage has not yet reached and to which you imagine returning again and again. Always.
Cala d'en Serra, the place where time runs differently
Ibiza in spring is a privileged place : tourism is not yet at its peak, most businesses have already started the season, jellyfish are barely visible and the weather is hot without overwhelming. As tiny grapes begin to develop on the vines, what they call the white island dresses during this season in light, yellow and violet tones thanks to the flowers that conquer any space. Colors that stand out against the leafy green that stars in the landscape in much of Pitiusa Mayor. Everything becomes truer and more real as you go north and leave behind the capital and the city of Sant Antoni de Portmany. The party, the noise and the hustle and bustle of the two main Ibizan towns give way to tranquility at every kilometer traveled. Nature becomes more and more present : rural beats concrete on the northern coast, where you can enjoy an Ibiza without traffic or parking problems. Your towel will always find its living space in its little coves.
A good example is precisely Cala d'en Serra . In summer it is filled to overflowing, but in spring the story is different. On the sand, colorful lizards scamper across your feet as you barely a few people gather on the shore to feel privileged human beings . Almost all of them, foreigners, as it suggests a rumor of words in English, German, Italian or Russian. If you listen to them, because unlike many other corners of Ibiza, here silence is the protagonist. And it only breaks with the chirping of the swallows and sparrows, the few seagulls that can be seen and the background music –at the perfect level- played in a small beach bar.
The best thing about this beach is that it has some minimum services that make it extremely comfortable: a rudimentary but effective bathroom, some hammocks with umbrellas for those who need them and a fair gastronomic offer at reasonable prices in the beach bar. On the blackboard you can read your options between a bit of fresh fish, wonderful salads and homemade burgers who are the envy of the entire island, as is the avocado club sandwich . All prepared by Remy and Esti, a Dutch man and a Spanish woman who manage this small establishment with wisdom. And who will serve you a mojito, a piña colada, a strawberry daiquiri or your favorite cocktail to lift you a little higher off the ground.
Daiquiris look this good in Cala d'en Serra
Cala d'en Serra is almost hidden, but it is one step away from Portinatx , where a few apartments and hotels attract family tourism thanks to its two wonderful beaches: the large sandbank and the small sandbank. The road in this area of the north coast, where your average speed will never exceed 40 kilometers per hour, It gives you little heavenly nooks and crannies at each detour. Cala Xuclar is the first and S'illot des Renclí, the second. A pine that dreams of being an olive tree and a huge stone sculpted by the wind in the shape of a skull serve as a frame for this cove that offers the essence of the island in the form of a beach. A few lucky people slowly bask in the spring sun alongside crystal clear waters where it's easy to see numerous minnows passing by. A marine biodiversity that becomes splendid when observed with simple diving goggles a few meters from the coast.
In S'illot des Renclí, there is also an interesting beach bar of the same name that has seen the island evolve since its opening 33 years ago , "When there was hardly any tourism and everything was different", as the waiters remember him. A family business where it is obligatory to try one of the specialties of Ibiza, the bullit de fish, formed by a soupy rice for first and a varied fish with potatoes for second. In addition, they are specialists in serving yummy stripes, you serve or grilled grouper . And for dessert, a local classic: flaó . Of course, call before to reserve or you may not find a place.
The road continues towards Cala Xarraca , from where an adventure starts in the form of a stone path and potholes that reaches It's caló de S'illa , a tiny cove away from everything and everyone. A place also known as Moon Beach , framed in a wild landscape where, wherever you go, you will find – at most – yourself. Back on the main road, if you continue to the southwest you will come to Benirras beach , the same as every Sunday it becomes a kind of festival starring the drums . An Ibizan experience as necessary as it is curious, different and overwhelming: the beach is abuzz, the contagious rhythm, the general joy and the traffic on the only access road, a real madness. If you are looking for tranquility, go to Benirrás any other day.
Like autumn, spring is an opportunity to discover the island from other perspectives. One of them are the hiking trails that run almost remote and inaccessible places other than on foot. There's also numerous cycling routes, because the roads in the north are full of small branches that are little more than paved roads, with very little traffic and that on two wheels bring you back to the most rural Ibiza that, of course, can also be enjoyed by car. The one that owns landscapes marked by fields of wheat, fig trees, almond trees, carob trees and ancient olive trees. And orchards that bear their first fruits next to white houses with ocher trim, from whose ceilings hang strings of dried chillies and the inimitable penjar tomatoes. crossings that run through towns like Sant Llorenç de Balafia or Sant Miquel de Balansat , crowned by one of the four fortified churches on the island: a temple that, built between the 14th and 15th centuries on the remains of an old Arab farmhouse, is known to be the one chosen by some regulars of coated paper for their wedding.
Church of Sant Miquel, in Balasant
Paths guide you to places like Sant Mateu , a tiny town around a crossroads where **one of the most interesting restaurants in the area is located: Can Cires**. Its owners, Victoria and Francis, are committed to local gastronomy, with a seasonal menu and Ibizan wines . If you get lost on your way, perhaps you can find one of the most interesting corners of the region: a hidden place behind a forest where a few terraced houses rise and whose destination, through a long path, is one of the most beautiful beaches in Ibiza. It's called Es portitxol and it is surrounded by an almost Pyrenean landscape between mountains and a dense pine forest. A few fishermen's huts add even more charm to this place away from it all.
If you don't get lost Saint Agnes of Corona It's another little place to stop at leisurely. Along the way you will find everything from retreat and yoga centers to agrotourism or a place as special as its name: The Gates of Heaven . A place chosen by the hippy community in the 70s to savor the sunset in which it is located today a beach bar in the middle of the forest and a terrace with incredible views of the islets of Ses Margalides . Its local cuisine, simple and cheap, has specialties such as the country salad, fried octopus and many ways to prepare rice with fish or seafood.
From there, a bumpy road crosses the area to the south to find two of the most turquoise beaches in Ibiza: Cala Salada and her little sister, Cala Saladeta . With an average age of around 20 years, its beautiful waters are dotted with mattresses, inflatable donuts, varied music and a coming and going of people offering fresh fruit, beers, cocktails or sarongs. If you want to blend in, put on the souvenir in the form of a song called Freed from desire in Mendetz's version.
A future plan? stay to live here
After the dose of tourism, better to return to the north. One option is to do it the Buscatell area heading towards the small town of Forada. There, along the Camí de sa Vorera, is Can Rich , the largest of the four wineries in Ibiza. With twenty hectares of vineyards and a organic production of around 100,000 liters per year , has a wide variety of wines that includes red, rosé, white and sparkling wines. They also make delicious Ibizan herbs, coffee liqueurs and balsamic vinegar, as well as extra virgin olive oil that they extract from their olive trees distributed over another twenty hectares. The winery also makes a very unique product: wine, olive and vinegar salts, with salt from the beautiful salt flats in the south of the island . It offers guided tours and tastings, but if you don't feel like it, it's worth just stopping by, seeing the beautiful winery and enjoying the bright green of the vineyards in spring.
Have a drink looking at the sea
the meandering Camí de Sa Vorera crosses a network of paved roads leading, one way or another, to Santa Gertrudis de Fruitera, a quiet and beautiful town that has become the reference for a rural Ibiza getaway. It is one of the places with the largest number of restaurants per square meter and on its pedestrian street you will find island classics such as coast bar . Born in the 1960s, in subsequent decades various artists who visited or lived in the area paid for their drinks with paintings, so it is his halls now have a wonderful art gallery. There, as in many other establishments, they are famous the ham sandwiches, as well as the toasted bread with tomato or the rich local sobrasada.
** Le Monde **, ecocenter either Musset are other good options to fill the stomach, as is Can Caus , on the outskirts and specializing in grilled meats. Although 5 kilometers to the north is one of the most beautiful restaurants in the area and, probably, in all of Ibiza. Is named Aubergine and its spaces are dominated by mint green. It has several charming interior lounges for when it cools down, but nothing like sitting in some of the tables on the main terrace , in the shade of a carob tree and next to a multitude of flowers or aromatic plants such as lavender. With organic products as a flag, their motto is farm to table : a good part of its vegetables come from a garden located a few meters from the terrace. A delicious olive bread with aioli serves as a starter for house specialties such as vegetable curry with scallops , which blends in perfectly with proposals off the menu such as the beet and quinoa burger, seasoned with tomato, goat cheese, caramelized onion and crispy and spicy alfalfa sprouts . With delicious homemade desserts and a quiet environment, Aubergine is a must for foodies. In spring, yes, it only opens at noon.
Heaven is this burger
If what you want is to disconnect from beach bars and restaurants, but not from the local and quality gastronomy, a good way to do it is to approach to the market of Santa Eularia des Riu , the largest city in the north of Ibiza. There are four stalls there that have their own boat and offer fresh fish: rotjo, rat, grouper, corva or San Pedro rooster , the local star and as ugly as it is delicious. In addition, you will find stripe specimens which is traditionally used for the famous rajada borrida, although it can also be fried. They also highlight the colorful brunettes , very tasty in marinade. Along the island there are also many, along the roads, supermarkets with an incredible variety of organic products (from classics such as beets or tomatoes to tamarinds or parsnips and many more) . So all you need is an oven, a wood-burning fire, and a book of traditional recipes to become a chef. And save, because buying fruit and vegetables in Ibiza forces you to scratch your pocket.
In Santa Eularia, in addition to a market, there is a long urban beach, but the road that travels towards Cala San Vicente is full of hiding places away from tourism who usually prefer beaches like Cala Nova or Cala Llenya. The best option is to travel to Sant Carlos, where every Saturday the well-known Las Dalias market , and from there take a small road that runs between curves, slopes and incredible lost houses towards one of the most privileged places in Ibiza: Cala Mastella. A singular corner that is easily reached by car, where the water has emerald tones and the pine trees are practically born in the sea.
Shopping in a different way
Half a hundred meters to one of the most picturesque postcards, as is the restaurant that has made this beach famous for years: The whiskers. You can get to it by road, by a small path between the rocks from Cala Mastella and, also, in the best possible way: swimming just a couple of minutes. Today the restaurant is run by El mustaches son, but it is still one of the reference places to have a tasty bullit de peix and rice a banda cooked with a wood fire. And the best: you can taste it while you literally have your feet in the water
The mustaches, a place of gastronomic pilgrimage
Very close, almost hidden, and a step away from the main road, is located Calo Roig , which goes unnoticed by the vast majority. From there, the road leads to another of the most amazing beaches in the north of Ibiza: Cala Boix . With ash-colored sand to spread the towel , just a few tourists and very little depth, is one of those places where you enter the sea as if you were taking a walk, look around and feel on a virgin beach. Further north, a steep slope descends to the white water beach , a narrow but wonderful coastal strip near Cala de San Vicente, which brings you back to the reality of tourism, although always far from the hustle and bustle of the southern beaches. A road with impossible curves and only suitable for the most advanced cyclists takes you back to Cala d'en Serra where, of course, you can once again swim among colored fish and enjoy another refreshing cocktail. Perhaps, at this point, you decide that you have found your ideal place.